The Prefects
by typingfasterthanyou
Summary: "What, do you want to stay hauled up in here, just us alone together for the rest of the summer?" A series of missing moments alone between Ron and Hermione, throughout the stories we know and beyond.
1. Chapter 1

The Prefects

 **This is just a little summer project, for myself mostly, as I read Harry Potter again and fill in the gaps where Harry's commentary doesn't narrate what happens when Ron and Hermione are left alone. Starts from the Order of the Phoenix and will hopefully run up to and beyond the Deathly Hallows.**

 **Hope anyone who might read this likes it! Been a while since I wrote anything that wasn't for uni.**

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Ever since the summer after second year it had been tradition for Hermione Granger to spend the first half of the summer with her parents, flying out on distinctly middle class holidays in Aspen and the south of France. Which she loved. And although Hermione rarely got to see her parents except for these holidays, as soon as Mr Weasley showed up at her house with her red-headed best friend at his side Hermione knew it was time for her _real_ summer to begin.

That was why she knew this summer would be different. On the 14th July, just two weeks after returning to her parents' large London home, Ron appeared on her doorstep with a witch not ten years older than herself. She introduced herself as Tonks _, not Nymphadora_ , and told her that she was an Auror assigned to take her to a safe house. When Hermione asked where they were going she couldn't help but feel a twinge deep in her stomach, as the witch and Ron exchanged a look that showed they knew something she didn't.

They took the temporary floo network set up in her parents' home to a house in another part of London, from there they walked, shielded from vision under disillusionment charms, to their final destination; a large, dark house which under the fidelious charm could only been seen as Tonks read out from a sheet of paper; "The head quarters of the order of the phoenix can be found at 12 Grimmauld Place, London."

As the house came into view Hermione found herself not looking at the townhouse that was squeezing out from between two other houses, but at Ron. And the look on his face told her this was going to be a very different summer indeed.

.

Yes, rather than spending the long lazy days degnoming gardens or taking trips into Ottery St Catchpole, Ron and Hermione found themselves head of the cleaning committee, along with Ginny, Fred and George. This was to make their living arrangements, well, liveable. It also distracted the teenagers from the heated meetings of this mysterious "order", which compromised of Mr and Mrs Weasley, Tonks, Lupin, Mad-eye, _Snape_ and even Dumbledore, plus a host of other witches and wizards whom frequented the safe house.

In fact, the only wizard who seemed to be absent from this mysterious Order was their best friend, Harry Potter himself. Ron and Hermione had protested many times to the isolation of Harry at Privet Drive, even cornering Dumbledore himself one time he had visited for a meeting.

"I don't have time to discuss this today Mister Weasley, Miss Granger," The old wizard had explained, his long beard swaying as he walked quickly down the corridor.

"But I don't understand why we can't tell Harry what's going on! He must be going mad all alone with the muggles," Ron exclaimed, almost tripping in his haste to follow the headmaster. Hermione had steadied him with a hand which sent a scarlet flush to his ears.

Dumbledore responded shortly, "Privet Drive is the safest place for Harry right now."

"But why?" Hermione protested, "Surely he's safer here with all the aurors and enchantments?"

"Harry is being tailed and protected at all times by at least one wizard. And there is protection at his Aunt and Uncle's that we do not even have here."

"But-"

The teenagers' cries were lost as the heavy door slammed behind Dumbledore, unsettling a cloud of dust around Ron and Hermione's feet. An uneasy silence fell as they stared at each other, unable to form a response to their headmaster's abrupt dismissal.

The silence did not last for long, however, as Sirius' mother decided to join the debate, her screams and cries doing as much good as Ron and Hermione's protests made.

.

One morning a particularly frazzled and wet haired Hermione ran the two flights of stairs between her room and Ron's, barely stopping to knock before barging into the room.

"Have you heard?" Hermione asked breathlessly, throwing herself onto the cold, empty single bed.

"I haven't heard anything except your piercing tones this morning." Ron grumbled this retort with his eyes still firmly closed, his hands gripping the quilt as if she was about to take this warmth away from him as well.

"Don't be smart Ronald," Hermione quipped haughtily, "I was in the shower and I could hear Sirius and Professor Dumbledore arguing downstairs…"

This certainly got Ron's sleepy attention. His eyelids fluttered open and saw that Hermione's curls were wet and smelling of her vanilla conditioner, the scent so strong due to the copious amounts she used to tame her frizzy locks. Not only that but her thin t-shirt was clinging slightly to her still damp frame…

He coughed and turned over in bed with a thump, trying to pay attention to what she was saying.

"I've never heard the Professor speak so angrily before! I couldn't quite hear exactly the conversation but what I got was, well, Harry's coming!"

The mention of his best friend quickly removed any thoughts of Hermione in the shower from Ron's head and he sat up in bed, exposing his embarrassingly crumpled cannons t-shirt to Hermione.

"Harry's coming, here?" He asked excitedly, imagining his best friend's things filling the second half of the slightly empty room.

"Yes!" Hermione responded with enthusiasm, but then her face fell.

Ron frowned, "What is it?"

The argument Hermione had overheard had been extremely heated, mainly with Dumbledore telling Sirius what he cannot tell Harry and what he cannot let Harry do. There had been a pattern this summer of leaving Harry out of the loop, no owls longer than a sentence of nothing had left 12 Grimauld Place that summer and now look what had happened; Harry and Dudley had been attacked by dementors and Harry was facing a ministry hearing!

"Dumbledore said Harry had been attacked by dementors-"

Ron was standing now, looking ready to storm Little Whinging himself in his half-mast plaid pyjama pants and orange t-shirt, he cried "We have to-"

"It's fine, Ron, he's okay," Hermione placed a hand on his shoulder and guided him back to his bed to continue the conversation, now sitting next to him rather than on the bed opposite. A fact they were both acutely aware of.

Ron struggled for a moment, staring at the hand that was still placed over the "CC" emblem on his shoulder, "Wh-how had this happened? What are we going to do?"

"I expect we'll find out at breakfast," she explained calmly, clasping her wayward hands now in her lap, "But I did hear something about underage magic-"

"He was being attacked! They can't expel him for that… Can they?"

For one, blissful moment Ron imagined all the alone time he would have with Hermione if Harry _was_ expelled, how he'd step out from beneath his best-friend's shadow, finally prove himself on his own… but that was just it. Harry was his best friend and like hell was he going to be expelled for defending himself. Ron was disgusted in himself for even thinking it.

"We don't know he's being expelled." Hermione replied calmly.

"Well with the way Fudge is carrying on he'll certainly try and make sure of it!" Ron responded equally angry as Hermione was calm, "talking about him in all the newspapers like he's a liar, when we know there's a bigger threat!"

Hermione was silent for a moment, considering her next words carefully, "I think there's a big threat to us coming today."

Ron stared at her questioningly.

"Well we haven't been the best of friends to Harry this summer and now he's under all this stress-" when Ron opened his mouth to oppose her view she raised a hand, "I know we didn't have a choice but think about it from Harry's point of view. Imagine you saw something as horrific as Cedric being killed and You Know Who returning, then immediately having to go back to live with your family who hates you, having no contact from me or Harry all summer, then be attacked by dementors and prosecuted by the ministry – only to find out me and Harry had been living in a secret house somewhere, not speaking to you on purpose."

Ron, for the first time in his life, had no response to this. He sat mutely, imagining how he's feel if Hermione and Harry had been shacked up all summer without him, all the things they'd get up to if he wasn't there. It took a while before he realised he was thinking of things from Harry's point of view, but from his own jealous feelings about his two best friends.

When Ron looked up, Hermione was by the door appraising him, "Get dressed, breakfast is in ten minutes."

Hermione gave his comical sleepwear an amused once-over before exiting, trying not to dwell on how she found his bedhead more arousing than endearing as a younger her once did.

.

The long table was filled with people fifteen short minutes later, Hermione sat between Fred (who was talking excitedly with George about "skiving snackboxes", whatever they were) and Ginny. At the head of the table Molly Weasley was too caught up in a heated conversation with Sirius and her husband to wonder about the whereabouts of Ron, who had not yet surfaced.

"So Harry's coming back today?" Ginny asked, her voice no longer with the childish tone when she spoke his name, but still with excitement.

Hermione looked at her enquiringly.

She rolled her eyes, "Come off it Hermione, I'd be surprised if Sirius' voice hasn't broken the muffliato charms this morning. I've not been eavesdropping on yours and Ron's conversations, I know you wouldn't want to tell the little sister anything anyway."

Hermione wanted to retort that they knew just as much as she did, but decided it wasn't worth the effort, "Oh. Yeah. I guess so, then."

Before Ginny could probe further the heavy wooden door opened with a bang and Ron wandered in, wearing jeans and a muggle t-shirt with the faded image of Homer Simpson across the front. He'd even attempted to straighten out his bedhead from earlier, something a younger Ron would have never bothered to do. Ginny raised an eyebrow as she noticed her brother had Hermione's full attention.

"Sorry am late," Ron mumbled, slumping onto the chair across from the two girls.

Hermione pursed her lips, "I told you ten minutes til breakfast, Ronald."

He rolled his eyes in the same manner as his sister, "Okay, mum."

A voice from the other side of the table called out, "what is it, Ronnie?" when Ron shrugged and flushed red, Mrs Weasley changed tact, "Oh, well, now we're all here we need to tell you all-"

"Harry's been attacked, him and his oaf of a cousin. Dementors in Little Whinging," Sirius shook his head bitterly, "but on the bright side the order will be gaining a new member!"

"He will not be joining!" Molly hissed, looking disgruntled at being interrupted.

"Let him decide that for himself," Sirius growled.

There was an unnatural quiet across the large breakfast table, obviously most people had overheard this news half an hour earlier, but seeing Molly and Sirius arguing showed there was something bigger going on under the surface.

"So anyway," Molly said brightly, "let's make sure we give him a big welcome when he arrives."

"Hear hear!" the twins chimed in unison, and Ron swore he saw a brightly coloured package being passed between them. Molly obviously saw something as well as she quickly berated on the meaning of an appropriate welcome, quickly taking the table back to it's usual morning antics.

"When do you reckon he'll get back?" Ginny whispered to Ron and Hermione, who shrugged in response. All three anticipating and panicking about the imminent return of their friend.

.

Later that morning Ron and Hermione found themselves cooped back up in Ron's room, trying to figure out what would happen when Harry returned – plus avoiding that day's chores.

"D'ya really think Harry's mad with us?" Ron asked, a morbid look across his face.

Hermione stopped her pacing to stare at him, "Don't you remember that last letter? _If you're not going to tell me anything then don't write me at all."_

"Maybe he's just saving on parchment?" Ron quipped hopefully, but the look in his eye said he knew they were in trouble.

Before Hermione could respond however, Hedwig flew through the open window at full speed, dropping three letters onto the empty bed. She then promptly began pecking at Ron's long, freckly fingers.

"What the bloody hell-" He spluttered, batting at the large white owl as blood dripped down his hand.

"Hedwig!" Hermione scalded, concern in her eyes as she ripped open one of the letters and scanned it quickly. Harry's scrawled handwriting read:

"It's Harry," She confirmed, assisting Ron in shooing Hedwig away, "He's really not happy."

Hermione's attempts to help however only shifted the owl's attention onto her. Soon enough her hands were also covered in beak marks.

"Bloody great bird!" Ron grunted, attempting to tend to his own wounds whilst deterring Hedwig from feasting on Hermione's hands. He frowned, "Well I guess you wouldn't be. But it's not our fault!"

She sighed, "I've told you this Ronald, he doesn't know that."

Finally, the pair managed to wrestle Hedwig into Pigwidgeon's cage, whom zoomed excitedly around her new roommate. Hedwig looked less than pleased with this arrangement and not just a little bit sinister, with blood trickling down her snowy feathers.

"Ooh, they look nasty Ron," Hermione commented with a wince, as she examined the wounds covering his fingers.

Ron gulped as Hermione took his hands into hers for further examination, "Yours are just as bad," he responded in a strangely high pitched tone.

She shrugged this off, turning his hands over to see the palms, "I'm sure your mum will have some essence of dittany, it heals all wounds according to _Healing at Home with Herbs."_

"Can we use that on our friendship with Harry?" Ron quipped. Despite the humour in his tone it was obvious he was worried.

Hermione smiled and shook her head a little, her hands lingering slightly on the wounds dotting Ron's fingers before dropping them. She began to walk to the door, "Come on, let's go find your mother."

"No!" Ron groaned, rubbing his hands over his face. When he looked up again there was a smudge of blood on his nose, "Anything, please. She'll want us to do chores and clean-"

"What, do you want to stay hauled up in here, just us alone together for the rest of the summer?" Hermione interrupted quickly. She soon turned pink as she realised the implications of her words.

Ron didn't respond, but the bashful smile on his face as he pushed past her said; _yes, please._

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 **Any thoughts and criticisms would be greatly appreciated.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you to everyone who left such lovely reviews for the last chapter! Now it's time for "the prefects" to actually become prefects.**

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 _Disclaimer: This chapter contains one line verbatem from Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix_

It was still early one morning… well early for Ron Weasley that is, when the ginger haired boy in question awoke all of a sudden and seemingly for no particular reason. This was unusual; Ron couldn't remember a time he wasn't awoken by his mother's shrill voice or the equally shrill voice of the clock Hermione had bewitched for him for his thirteenth birthday.

Slowly he stretched, rubbing the sleep from his eyes and the knots from his back. When he finally opened his eyes he spotted the source of unease in the room – his best friend's bed was empty, and cold.

Ron checked the clock, it read 7AM, a time unheard of in the summer months. _Oh bloody hell,_ today was Harry's hearing, Ron suddenly felt very guilty for not waking and wishing him good luck. What kind of a best friend was he? _I bet Hermione was awake_ his scathing inner monologue mocked, _I bet she sent him off with one of those smiles of hers and a kiss-_ Where had that come from? Why on earth was Ron thinking about his two best friends kissing like that? Disgusting.

With a yawn he padded out of the room, in search of someone who could fill him in on what he'd slept through. So naturally he arrived at the girls' room.

Before he could knock, however, the door swung open and he was face to face with his sister. "Good morning," she greeted with a frown, clearly in shock from seeing her brother awake at this hour.

"Mornin'," he mumbled in response, "have you seen-"

"Harry? I decided to give him some space this morning, didn't think he needed the annoying little sister type bothering him…" Ginny changed tact as she saw Ron was paying more attention to the door behind her head than her words, "Hermione, however, is another story."

"What's the matter with Hermione?" Ron asked with a start, the bleary haze of sleep no longer present in his gaze.

Ginny raised an eyebrow, "You go see."

With no hesitation Ron pushed open the heavy wooden door, barging into the room with all the grace of a baby elephant. Not even the sound of this woke sleeping beauty, however. Hermione's hair fanned out messily around her face, which was contorted with the force of her mouth being as wide as it was. In fact, _Hermione Granger was drooling_. A trickle of liquid seeped out of the corner of her mouth, more appearing with the steady movement of her breath.

Ron could've sworn he heard a scoff before the door behind him slammed and the patter of feet on creaky floorboards echoed around the old house. Again, this did not wake Hermione.

Now, if Ron Weasley awaking of his own accord was unusual, Hermione sleeping past six would be an impossibility. Such a thing was simply unheard of. In fact, Hermione had once awoken ten minutes after six at Hogwarts, and she had been so flustered she'd missed breakfast entirely and showed up twenty minutes early for charms.

So therefore, Ron Weasley had a dilemma. He could walk out of the room and pretend this never happened, saving himself a lot of aggro. But that's no fun is it? His next option was to savour this, invite anyone in the vicinity to watch and laugh – but that would certainly get him hexed. So all he had left was waking Hermione up, an idea that scared him immensely.

"Hermione?" He whispered, his voice so quiet even he knew it wouldn't wake her. He nudged her slightly with the back of his hand, "Oi, Hermione!"

Ron's breath caught as Hermione made a drawn out groaning noise. Was she waking up? No, she rolled over onto her side and now her sleeping face was directed at Ron's flushing one. That noise ignited things inside him that no best friend should do.

"Wake up! Hermione, wake up!" He whispered a little louder, now desperate for her to open her eyes and be his best friend Hermione, not this strange sleeping woman he didn't know. "Come on, this is getting ridiculous now!"

Suddenly Molly Weasley's magically enhanced voice rose from the kitchen two floors below announcing; "breakfast is ready in ten minutes." Ron tore his eyes away from Hermione to glance at the door, considering once again the pros and cons of pretending this had never happened and just discussing the day's events over a bacon butty downstairs.

"What are you doing in my bedroom, Ronald?" Hermione asked indignantly, her voice rising several octaves towards the end of the sentence.

Panic stricken, Ron suddenly couldn't find the words to explain why he was stood in the middle of the girls' bedroom. How embarrassing, she must think he was some kind of stalker, skulking around whilst she was asleep.

"Didn't your parents ever tell you it was rude to barge into a girl's room whilst she's sleeping?" She condescended, attempting to gain some dignity whilst arranging her old care bears pyjama top so it lay a little more decently across her chest.

"You're not a girl!" Ron blurted out, regretting the words almost as quickly as he said them.

"Oh I'm not am I? Maybe it's you just being the unobservant oaf you usually are but I'm actually a woman!" Hermione retorted.

"Uh you know what I mean! You storm into our room all the time-"

"Because, Ronald, you need to be woken up else you'll sleep forever!" Huffily she leaned over and grabbed the old clock from next to her bed, glancing at the time, "Why are you waking me up at - "

With a wry smile Ron raised an eyebrow, it had now gone a quarter past seven, still early but practically the afternoon by Hermione's standards.

"Harry's trial!" She exhaled, a look of dread and guilt painting her features, "How did I oversleep?"

"It must have been the pain of your late night defeat keeping you in bed," Ron retorted cheekily, perching himself on the end of her bed.

They had spent the night previous up late trying to distract Harry from the upcoming trial with all manner of games and ideas. Both attempts to involve him in games of gobstones and exploding snap had failed, so they'd settled for letting him watch blankly as Ron completely annihilated Hermione at wizards' chess.

"I let you win," Hermione responded unconvincingly, obviously still beating herself up about missing Harry that morning.

Ron's winning grin dropped slightly, "Look, if it helps I slept in as well."

"Well I could've guessed that!" Hermione rolled her eyes, "Standard Ron Weasley practice."

"I still woke up before you though!" He said triumphantly as Hermione sighed, running a hand through her frankly birds nest of a hairdo.

Hurriedly, as if dressing quickly would bring Harry back for her to bid farewell properly, Hermione rose from the bed and crossed the room to the ancient grey basin in the corner. Ron watched as she splashed water on her face, droplets darkening the pale pink of her pyjamas and dripping onto the musty floorboards. He had never seen Hermione getting ready in the morning. No, that had always been a secret of the girls' dormitory. He'd never seen her utter the hair smoothing charm almost in shame, as her bushy hair became more manageable and calm. Or seen all the clothes she'd discarded (carefully on their hangers, of course) before ordering Ron to close his eyes as she put on the same old muggle jeans and jumper she always wore.

"Are you not going to get dressed before breakfast?" Hermione broke the silence, not addressing how Ron had just watched her for ten minutes as she got ready.

He blinked, "Oh, er, yeah I guess I will."

But before he could make it out of the room Hermione cleared her throat a little anxiously.

"Do you ever think we'll get something right with Harry again?"

Ron groaned internally. Harry, again. Why was everything about his best friend?

"I'm sure he'll forgive us, eventually," He responded, as blasé as he could muster.

"If he doesn't get expelled," Hermione bit her lip, her magically perfected teeth piercing her own flesh in anxiety.

"He wont."

And he didn't. In fact, it was as if their friendship had been magically repaired as soon as Harry stepped back into Grimmauld Place, still a student at Hogwarts and still their best friend. The three of them managed to avoid any major fall-outs or arguments, other than bickering over who got to scrub the mouldiest cupboards, until the last week of the summer holidays. When two fateful letters with two shiny badges literally flew into their lives.

Somehow Hermione was the only person excited by the prefects' announcement, and it seemed like it was her own fault both guys in her life were now angry with her. It wasn't her fault she'd assumed Harry got it! He was holding the badge and he always seemed to be Dumbledore's favourite… It wasn't that Ron _didn't_ deserve it, but that Harry did as well.

Still, Hermione wasn't going to let this deter her and her aspirations. She was a prefect! Her parent's would be so proud as soon as she owled them. With a little awkwardness she asked Harry if she could borrow Hedwig.

Harry's voice wasn't his own and it made Hermione's heart sink a little as he spoke; "Yeah no problem! Take her!"

Cringing, Hermione called the large white owl to her and left the room, but rather than owling her parents immediately she followed the sounds of Ron's voice, which was talking excitedly about whichever broomstick he was coveting, into the twins' room.

"Hi Hermione," Fred and George chimed as she walked in, Fred then spoke again, "Come to see Ronnie the prefect?"

Ron's grin faded to a sullen stare and he fiddled with the shiny badge still between his fingers.

"Congrats by the way, we all knew it'd be you," George continued, giving Hermione a friendly pat on the shoulder.

Fred touched her other shoulder with a smirk, "Ronnie on the other hand…"

Hermione suddenly became very fussed with picking particles of dust out of Hedwig's fur rather than addressing either of the twins, or the boy staring at them angrily.

They exchanged a look, "We'll…" George began.

Fred finished, "Leave you two to it."

The door closed loudly behind them and even more dust fell from the ceiling, as their howls of laughter echoed around the house. This only served to intensify the awkward silence left between Ron and Hermione.

"Nice to know what you truly think I'm worthy of," Ron grumbled finally, throwing the badge onto one of the beds behind him, sitting heavily beside it, "Really nice. I always knew everyone saw more in Harry than me-"

Hermione sighed. "Don't. Ron. You know that's not what I-"

"Yes it is! _Hermione_." He mocked, " _B-but Ronald simply c-couldn't have achieved anything_!"

"I didn't say that!" She exclaimed loudly. The sound of her outburst sending Hedwig flying away to settle haughtily on the windowsill.

"You implied it," Ron responded lowly.

Hermione bit her lip, "Look. It's not that _you_ couldn't have got this on your own merits, it's just seeing Harry with the badge-"

"You saw everything you ever wanted. You and Harry on a pedestal together for everyone to see. _Oh who's that in the background?_ That's just their mate Ron, we don't talk about him," Ron ranted angrily, avoiding even locking eyes with Hermione for more than a second.

"Don't be silly!"

"Oh because that's what I am. The silly one. The funny mate that no one quite remembers the name of, or expects to be a prefect."

"Ron stop it! Stop putting yourself down like that!" Hermione spoke in the voice which only ever seemed to come out when she was arguing with Ron. The high pitch of it seemed to get through to the boy, however, and he fell back into a sullen silence again.

Roughly, Ron picked up the badge again, "It's what everyone thinks though."

Hermione stared at him, examining how easily the excitement at being special had disappeared from his eyes. It was her fault. Why had she just assumed Harry had got it like that? She let out a breath, "No they don't. You don't think you deserve things so you only try enough to get along, with school and stuff. But the prefects, they don't look at school marks or who your siblings are. They choose that on who you are!"

"And who am I?" Ron mumbled sarcastically, barely believing her words since he just assumed she was lying. Hermione obviously just wanted to get back in his good books.

"Someone who knows how it feels to be picked on, to be the youngest and occasionally forgotten about." His ears turned red as she picked on all of his insecurities in one go. Hermione continued nonetheless, "Someone who can use these experiences to help the younger students! Ron, you're kind and you get people, you'll be like the peoples prefect!" Ron forgot his embarrassment for a moment to frown in confusion, "Sorry, muggle reference."

The red flush had now fully spread from Ron's ears to his entire face and neck.

"Look," Hermione spoke measuredly, but she was now quite obviously as self conscious as Ron was, "You're going to be a great prefect, if you put your mind to it, and I'm sorry if I implied anything different."

"Thanks," Ron mumbled, with great interest in the slightly loose floorboard beneath his feet. As quickly as it had arrived, however, the anger subsided in place of a wry grin, "You'll be the perfect prefect, of course."

Hermione rolled her eyes, "Oh of course."

"The ickle first years will quake in their tiny shoes when Prefect Granger storms the corridors," He chuckled at the thought.

Despite herself, she let out a laugh, "Alright, alright. I'm leaving before you insult me and my rule-keeping skills further."

"No insults, just extreme praise for extreme rule-keeping!" Ron called after Hermione as she left the room, still in peals of laughter which he was reciprocating. Because that's how it was for Ron and Hermione, they'd fall out hard but be the best of friends almost immediately afterwards.

 **.**

 **Hope you all like it. Constructive criticism welcome as always**

 **(Unrelated, but has anyone read the cursed child? I finished it in about 2 hours flat, now I need to get tickets for the show…)**


	3. Chapter 3

**I apologise for the lateness of this chapter. For some reason I was really struggling to get this out when the previous chapters have really flowed. So let me know if this chapter isn't quite up to scratch, I just wanted to get this out there as soon as I managed to finish it!**

 **Disclaimer: this chapter contains some dialogue from Harry potter and the Order of the Phoenix.**

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It was the first of September, an exciting day as usual, but the brightness of their return to Hogwarts was dulled slightly for the teenagers by the presence of an Auror guard. It was another reminder that everything had changed. It meant that just because they were leaving 12 Grimmauld Place, it didn't mean they were leaving its darkness behind.

Hermione wore her prefect badge with pride, even on her white muggle shirt it shone with the reminder that she'd earned it. On the other hand, Ron (after being forced to having it visible by Hermione) had pinned the red badge onto the pocket of his jeans, in the hope that the twins wouldn't notice it. He also continued to feel embarrassed by his new title as Hermione informed Harry that they would be going straight to the prefects' carriage, rather than sitting with him on the Hogwarts Express that year.

"I'm not enjoying it," Ron spluttered defensively, as he felt Harry, Ginny and his other siblings stare at him, judging him for being a prefect, "I'm not Percy!"

"I know you're not," Harry responded with a grin, but Ron could see mocking in his eyes.

"You're worse," Fred and George chimed with matching chortles.

Ron began to despise being a prefect, his first day on the job and he was already abandoning his best mate and being labelled a prick (well a bigger prick) by Ginny and the twins. Why had he got the stupid badge anyway? It's not like he wanted it, or would even be any good at it. Maybe if he just skipped all the meetings, sat with Harry in their usual compartment…

Ron felt an insistent tugging on the sleeve of his maroon jumper. It was Hermione pulling him towards the front of the train, a place he'd never been before. After sending an apologetic glance in Harry's direction he succumbed to Hermione's will and fell into step with her.

"He understands; you know? He just feels a bit left out," Hermione justified.

Understands what? That his best friends were choosing a badge over their oldest tradition? Hermione, yeah, it was obvious being a prefect was her natural progression in life and no one expected anything less of her, but he was meant to be loyal right?

"I feel bloody left out," Ron grumbled, "I'd rather sit with Harry and the others than go to this stupid meeting."

"It's not stupid!" Hermione replied tightly, obviously having prepared and got excited for this gathering. A gathering of hardworking people like her. Well, and Ron.

She stepped onto the first carriage first and Ron followed after with both of their trunks (Hermione couldn't pull hers because of the amount of books and folders she had in her arms ready to consult in their meeting).

If Ron had thought this prefects' meeting was a bad idea before, as soon as Ron stepped inside the compartment he _knew._ Lounging across two seats by the doorway was the blonde haired Slytherin Prefect, smirking as his dark haired counterpart stroked his limp hair.

"No Potter?" Draco Malfoy asked, raising an eyebrow. He mimicked looking around for the third of the golden trio, "Strange Dumbledore didn't choose his favourite student. Guess we're going to have to put up with the mudblood and the blood traitor."

Pansy Parkinson let out a cackle of laughter as Draco shook his head in dismay, her laughter increasing as Hermione had to attempt to placate Ron.

"He's just trying to get to you, calm down," Hermione whispered, frowning at the obvious anger painted across Ron's freckled face.

"He's such a…" Ron couldn't seem to find the words to describe the boy smirking before them.

Hermione tried to tell him, "He's not worth it," But she was interrupted.

"Better a blood traitor and a… a muggleborn than a death eater wannabe!" Ron blurted out, sounding a lot more confident than he actually was. In fact, as soon as the words left his lips the redhead seemed shocked he'd even thought them up.

Draco's lazy smile was instantly wiped from his face and his icy glare was now focused solely on a rather nervous looking Ron Weasley, "What did you just say?"

"Leave it Malfoy!" Hermione retorted in her best prefect voice, "Come on Ron, he's not worth it." She repeated, pulling again on Ron's jumper in an attempt to lead him to the remaining two seats.

"Go on, Weasley, listen to your mudblood girlfriend," Malfoy taunted and Pansy almost choked on her own laughter, tears streaming down her pale, pinched face.

Ron opened his mouth to angrily respond, but luckily in that moment Professor McGonagall slid open the compartment door. Whether it was her dark cloak billowing around her or the distaste in her glare but the entire room fell silent, Ron and Hermione finally sitting in seats across the room from Malfoy as the latter sank back into his seat as if nothing had happened.

"Can we please not have fighting amongst you prefects. You are all representatives of the school, not unruly first years," McGonagall said, shaking her head disparagingly. "Now, I'm here to introduce your new head girl and boy, Francis Rabnott and Theodore Ogden."

The two in question stepped forward, and with well practised smiles they took over the meeting.

"Please, call me Theo," The head boy began, grimacing a little at the use of his full name, "Well, Francis and I are very happy to be here as your head boy and girl for this year."

"And we hope we're all going to work together brilliantly," Francis smiled, taking out some papers, "Now, we've put together a simple prefect rounds rota which to begin with has paired together the prefects from each house to ease you into it."

"Although it is encouraged for you all to branch out and pair up with other houses," Theo added with a cheeky look at the head girl.

Hermione watched them closely, taking the hint that Theo and Francis' pretty well known relationship must have begun on prefect rounds. Theo was a Slytherin and Francis, a Gryffindor and their coming together despite house rivalries had been quite a scandal during their fifth year (Hermione's third). Hermione couldn't understand it, herself, the likelihood of her and _Malfoy_ ever seeing past their differences was laughable.

Her gaze then flicked to her Gryffindor companion. Ron, however, was a different story. Hermione didn't fancy him, _she didn't,_ but there was an odd feeling deep in the pit of her stomach when she imagined wandering the castle late at night, alone with Ron Weasley. _Probably just annoyance at having to do all of the work,_ the reasonable part of her brain considered.

The sound of the head girl's voice pulled Hermione out of her thoughts and the prefect could hardly believe she'd been distracted! Blinking a few times Hermione scolded herself for being so ditsy.

"-And the sixth year Hufflepuff prefects will patrol Sunday evenings 9pm to 11pm. Thanks everyone for attending this meeting today, believe me I know you'd rather be eating chocolate frogs and catching up with your classmates, so I'm going to let you all go now." Francis finished with a beaming smile.

Theo continued, "Have a good year guys and remember both me and Francis will be around for your questions at any time."

With a huff Hermione gathered her things and was the first out of the compartment, too embarrassed by her wandering mind to ask the head students what she'd been too distracted to listen to.

"So, patrols should be interesting, right?" Hermione asked as Ron caught up with her.

"Mmm yeah," Ron mumbled, looking a million miles away. He coughed, "Listen, did you hear what Malfoy said… about you being-"

"A mudblood?" Hermione deadpanned at the same time as Ron stuttered, "Girlfriend?"

There was a strange silence between the two as they stopped to let a pair of giggling second years squeeze past and disappear into the next compartment.

"Well yeah, that too. Of course. Yeah, that's worse, isn't it? Neither of them are true either so it doesn't even matter…" Ron's words came out in short bursts and with every pause his face turned a deeper shade of beetroot. He didn't even know why he'd brought up Malfoy's stupid comment, like he said it wasn't even true.

Hermione narrowed her eyes, "Yeah, it's not."

"Anyway, prefects," Ron said lamely, adjusting the trunks just for something to do.

"Prefects," She agreed, shaking her head a little as they began to walk down the train again.

"Can't believe we have to give up our Saturday nights to wander round the corridors looking for people out of bed," Ron moaned, unknowingly giving his companion exactly what she needed to hear.

Hermione closed her eyes in relief, she made a mental note of their Saturday night patrols. This gave her an idea, "So, I'm sure you're going to hate having your supper being cut short for patrols."

He frowned, "No, we don't start until 9, we'll have plenty of time to eat."

"Yes, of course. I forgot," Hermione smiled. Saturday night patrols at 9pm. Now of course it was her prefect duties getting her so excited.

"D'ya really think we're gonna have to, like, split up snogging couples and stuff?" Ron asked, his eyes wide with the concept. It was pretty well known that in Hogwarts, the only place you could take your date for a bit of privacy was the broom cupboards and the astrology tower.

"That is pretty much our job description," She cringed, "But if they didn't want to get caught then they shouldn't be out of bed after curfew."

"Like we can talk," Ron grinned and Hermione couldn't help but laugh as well.

Finally, they reached the compartment where Harry, Ginny, Neville and Luna were waiting, Ron throwing himself onto the seat next to a pile of treats from the already departed food trolley and Hermione sat primly next to Harry.

They spent time updating Harry on what had happened in the meeting, discussing their new responsibilities and the difference in what they meant to each of them. Ron and Hermione also caught up with the other occupants of the compartment, Neville and Luna adding a different tone to the well practiced Hogwarts express experience.

Soon enough the train was pulling into Hogsmeade station and the prefect badges were now pinned onto charcoal school robes rather than summer muggle clothes.

"Come on, Ron," Hermione announced suddenly.

He looked up from the pumpkin pasty that was flaking down his robes, "What?"

"Look, I can see the station, we need to go," She responded insistently, standing up and making for the door.

Ron's gaze flicked from her to Harry, who was staring out the window as if it was the most interesting sight he'd ever seen. Git. He wasn't ever going to help him out with all this prefect stuff was he? He probably knows he'd make the better one.

"We'll just get off when the train stops, what do we even need to do now?" He said flippantly, picking up another pasty.

"Look, all the first years are starting to run up and down the corridor, we need to make sure they get to the boats."

Ron rolled his eyes and pulled himself to his feet, annoyed that once again this bloody badge was ruining his good time. He glanced around the compartment, looking for anything that would mean he didn't have to run around after some snotty first years. His eyes settled on the cages in the corner.

"Surely someone should stay with Crookshanks and Pig…" he said, trying hard not to grin at his own finesse.

Luna jumped in eagerly, "I'll look after them!"

"There you go," Hermione said matter-of-fact-ly, before frowning, "Just don't tell me they've got nargles or anything when we get back."

Ron was also frowning at Luna, but more like he was going to hex her than Hermione's scathing comment.

"Come on," Hermione repeated loudly, and as Ron left with her he could've sworn he heard Harry snort.

Out in the corridor it was chaos. It seemed one of the first years had decided to try out their new wand on their new friend and not dissimilarly to Ron's mishap in their second year, this kid had snakes slithering out of it's mouth with every sob. The other first years were both laughing and screaming as the poor child was trying to ask them for help, but only succeeding in increasing the pile of snakes littering the floor.

"Slytherin in the making," Ron chuckled to Hermione, who promptly jabbed him in the ribs and walked over to the first year with a soothing smile plastered on her face.

"Let's get you sorted out, yeah?" She told the girl, who nodded tearfully and spewed up another snake.

Ron found enough time to stop laughing and vanished all of the snakes, whilst telling the hysterical first years that if they didn't calm down they'd be on the first train home. It may not have been the Hermione Granger approach to prefect-ing but Ron felt very pleased that he'd found himself a style that suited him.

Hermione muttered to herself as she tried to find the right counter-spell, "It seems like an improperly performed Serpensortia… I can't say I could fix this for you but I'll try…" She pulled out her wand and smiled reassuringly at the terrified girl, "Anapneo… impedimenta…" She thought for a moment, "Finite Incantatum."

"What did you just do?" The young girl asked, wiping her eyes and rubbing her throat.

"I cleared your airway and slowed the rate that the snakes will appear, the last one should stop any spells but since it was improperly performed I can't say it would work," Hermione informed her, looking almost disappointed she couldn't find an exact solution.

"Bloody brilliant this one," Ron complimented, standing next to his fellow prefect with pride.

"Language Ronald," Hermione spoke in a small voice, but the smile on her face said something completely different.

Ron turned away so she couldn't see his sudden flush, "Come on firsties, the train's stopped now so it's time to get out of the bigger kids' way! You don't want to be trodden on…"

Hermione rolled her eyes, "First years this way please, mind your step when you get off the train..."

.

 **And they're finally back at Hogwarts! I will try to update as soon as I possibly can, but I am travelling to Barcelona on Friday so will have very little time for writing.**

 **Any feedback would be great** **Thanks**


	4. Chapter 4

**Very short chapter this time but I enjoyed the finishing effect too much to add to it, hope you enjoy!**

"Poisonous Toadstools don't change their spots," Ron spoke to Hermione argumentatively, his raised voice attracting the attention of the other Gryffindors at dinner that evening, "Anyway, I've always thought Dumbledore was cracked trusting Snape, where's the evidence he ever really stopped working for You-Know-Who?"

"I think Dumbledore's probably got plenty of evidence, even if he doesn't share it with you, Ron," Hermione responded haughtily, flicking her bushy hair over her shoulder and narrowly missing Harry's face; which was not impressed.

They had been arguing about Snape's trustworthiness all dinnertime, so emblazoned in their row that anything or _anyone_ not involved was left completely forgotten. Of course this wasn't unusual, it would be more strange if they weren't fighting.

"Oh, shut up, the pair of you," Harry boomed suddenly. Ron and Hermione both stopped short, widening their eyes at their best friend whom they'd forgotten was even present. He continued angrily, "Can't you give it a rest? You're always having a go at each other, it's driving me mad!"

The pair continued to stare as Harry stood and stormed out of the great hall, leaving behind a full shepherds' pie and a sea of whispers and laughter in his wake.

"What was that all about?" Ron half laughed, taking hold of Harry' plate to push the contents onto his own. But Hermione's hand tugging at his robe sleeve stopped him.

"How are you eating after that?" She hissed, "We need to talk about this!"

"I can talk and eat," He responded noncommittally, giving the disgusted Hermione a lovely view of the food he'd just stolen from his best friend's plate.

Hermione huffed, "I don't know who Harry thinks he is talking to us like that."

"Yeah," Ron agreed, "What was he on about? We don't just have a go at each other all the time."

"Stop talking with your mouth full Ronald!" Hermione reprimanded, "But yes, we just have… conflicting opinions!"

"Exactly! As if he said we were driving _him_ mad, when he's the one moping and moaning all the time!" He complained.

She threw him one of her McGonagal-esque withering looks, "We can't blame Harry for being down at the moment."

"And he can't blame us!" Ron pointed out, a triumphant look across his freckled face as he stabbed a carrot with his fork.

"Well, yes," Hermione nodded non-committedly, "He needs to find a more suitable outlet for his… issues. He simply cannot go around shouting at his best friends like this!"

"Maybe we can convince him to fight Snape back when he gets to him like that, it'd certainly make potions more interesting!" Ron snickered.

Even Hermione laughed despite herself, before regaining composure, "Violence isn't the answer Ronald, you're acting like you're on the wrong side of this war that's brewing."

"Oh come off it Hermione!" Ron exclaimed incredulously, "Wanting to see Snape clocked in his ridiculous nose does not make me a death eater!"

"No, but it's unlikely you'll ever be able to join…" Her voice dropped to a whisper, "the order of the phoenix if you keep wishing harm on it's members."

In contrast to her whisper Ron laughed out loud, "Are you saying Padfoot doesn't want Snape hurt more than I do?"

Hermione pursed her lips obstinately, looking much like Ron's mother when Sirius had suggested Harry was going to join the order. With a wide grin Ron took this as a win, pushing his now-empty plate away from himself and belching loudly.

"You're going to be late to divination," Hermione pointed out tightly.

Ron nodded, still smirking, and stood waiting for her to follow suit. She did and he chuckled, "I'll say hi to Trelawney for you."

She hit him with her bag, "Funny."

"What should I say to Harry?" Ron asked, looking concerned for the first time that dinner.

Hermione sighed, "Tell him we've stopped fighting, but that it would be nice if he stopped taking his temper out on us."

Without further conversation they parted ways, Hermione for her free period in the common room and Ron for Divination with Harry, their argument forgotten as it always was.

.

Things only seemed to get worse for Harry as he landed himself a week's worth of detentions with the new Defence teacher Professor Umbridge, leaving Ron and Hermione alone in the common room all evening, wondering what evil things that woman would be making their best friend do.

"Honestly, Hermione, the evil just radiates off of her. Wonder what her first name is – Satan?" Ron grumbled, shuffling a deck of exploding snap between his long fingers.

Hermione sighed and dipped her quill in the ink, "It's Dolores."

"Dolores," He mocked bitterly, "How is it you know everything?"

"I read, Ronald," She replied pointedly. Ron continued to stare at her blankly, "There was an article about "Dolores Umbridge's successful first week at failing Hogwarts school" in the Prophet this morning."

"How is Hogwarts failing? I don't even know why you read that drivel anymore," Ron exclaimed, shaking his head at the disrespect for his school. He might hate schoolwork, but Ron was determined to contradict anything that foul woman said. Also he'd begun to play a game of exploding snap against an imaginary player two, in stark contrast to Hermione who was copying out chapter 3 of Umbridge's textbook as instructed to in their lesson. Ron frowned at her, "And I especially don't understand why you're doing that pointless homework for _her."_

"It's always good to be on top of your work, I don't want to fall behind," Hermione explained, adding a full stop to the end of that entire roll of parchment and promptly pulled out another.

Ron's eyes nearly bugged out of his head, "Like you'd ever fall behind. Really, Hermione, I don't know what you're preparing yourself for; no job I've ever heard of requires you to work this hard."

"Every job requires you to work hard, if you want to do well and progress, just like school," She rolled her eyes, "Plus it'd be harder for me to get a decent job anyway so I'd have to work twice as hard."

"What d'ya mean it'd be harder for you to get a job? You're like the smartest person I've ever met," He said. Ron's tone had started out as nonchalant, but as he realised what he was saying his tone began to gain pitch and his voice finally broke at the end of the sentence. He was thankful Harry wasn't around to hear that, or anyone else for that matter. The common room had emptied long ago, so why wasn't their best friend back?

Hermione seemed not to notice. She sighed slowly, placing her quill at the bottom of her parchment, "The people I'm thinking about are less concerned with intelligence and more concerned with the quality of a person's blood."

"There's nothing wrong with the quality of your blood," Ron instantly responded, his tone still slightly strangled.

Despite herself, Hermione found herself smiling at the red headed boy who was determined to not look angry or embarrassed.

"And anyway, the bloody Death Eaters aren't the sort of people you want to be applying for jobs with," Ron pointed out, stating the obvious as he so often would.

"We know the ministry's been infiltrated Ron, come on, you-know-who has his death eaters everywhere," Hermione pushed, nodding when a look of resigned acceptance fell over Ron's face. Then she laughed bitterly, "Who knows, with the way this war's going there might not be any jobs left by the time we leave Hogwarts."

"You really think this is a war?" Ron's fearful blue eyes were locked on Hermione now, his easy game of exploding snap long abandoned on the table alongside Hermione's homework.

She nodded solemnly, "It's underground right now thanks to Fudge's blatant ignorance to His return, but eventually he'll accept what's really going on and the world will go crazy. Well, crazier than it already is."

Ron was silent as he stared at a spot above Hermione's head, contemplating something very seriously. He spoke, "I thought I'd work for the Cannons when I left Hogwarts," he suddenly flushed and became self conscious at his frank admission, "Not as a player, obviously, but maybe as their manager or something. I'd be their water boy if I got to have one of their official uniforms."

"You could play," Hermione replied dumbly, not really sure what to respond to his honesty.

"Not anymore, _you just said that,"_ he responded accusingly, "We're gonna be dragged into this war that's brewing and with Harry as my best mate I could hardly abandon him to be a _waterboy_ for a quidditch team."

Hermione sighed, she was doing that a lot lately, and gave in, "when I was a little girl I wanted to be a writer. That was before I knew about magic, of course. I wanted to write about all these strange and amazing things I could do, because the only place it seemed to make sense was in fiction."

"I always forget you grew up not knowing you were a witch," Ron admitted, feeling pleased when his words seemed to light up Hermione's face.

"Thanks," She smiled, "Now I think I'd like to work in magical law, change things so muggleborns are treated just like purebloods… It won't happen though, not if things go the way they seem to be."

The crackle of the raging fire seemed to grow as they sat in comfortable silence, both dwelling on the futures they would no longer live out.

"My mum and dad got married right out of Hogwarts," Ron suddenly blurted out, even looking surprised at his own words, "they were only two years older than us."

"Lot's of people married quick in the culture of fear that surrounded that time," Hermione replied in her regular factual tone and Ron's face dropped, "Oh no, no I mean people married quick because they didn't want to waste time apart, not that that was the only reason they got married!"

He seemed to still be thinking about something not quite conveyed in his words, "They weren't even together before they got married. Eloped. They hadn't even been on a date. Dad told me."

"What happened?" She asked, wondering quite what could force two friends to admit they were so much more.

"A huge attack. Mum's brothers Fabian and Gideon died and Dad said Mum told him how she felt at their funeral. Said there was no point in pretending she didn't love him after that." Ron's ears tinged pink as he mentioned the word love but his tone remained solemn, trying to imagine life in a war like that. A life their world wasn't too long away from.

Hermione's voice was very quiet, "Something so beautiful came out of something so horrible."

There was a long moment stretched out with things neither would ever dare to say. Hermione was staring at her abandoned DADA homework intently and Ron was watching her just as closely. But neither would know what the other wanted to say as the silence was broken by the creaking of the portrait and Harry stumbled through.

 **Let me know what you think! Do you prefer the longer chapters or are the shorter, more condensed chapters better?**

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